Tea time with Jeff and his trusty Trangia

Tea time is all about slowing the day down for a little while, and a Trangia is the perfect stove for the job.

Yes, it takes a little longer to boil water than a roaring MSR Whisperlite, but it`s quiet, it`s simple, and it transports you back in time to to the good old days when camping was less complicated.

The company was a Swedish father-and-sons operation that began in 1925 and is still owned and operated by the family. They started manufacturing lightweight aluminum cookware that evolved into the design of their alcohol burner, the central piece of all their cooksets. 

This little stove burns methyl hydrate, otherwise known as wood alcohol or fondue fuel. This fuel isn't as flammable as white gas, so is a little safer.

It doesn`t get much simpler than this: set the burner in the stove base, pour the fuel in, light it, and place the windscreen on top. Little tabs in the windscreen fold down to support your pot or kettle. Note that when you first light the fuel you may not see flame; Jeff waves his hand over it to feel if there's heat or not.

When heated the fuel pressurizes and is forced out the little jets on the burner rim, where it burns hotter than you`d think. 

Jeff likes how simple the Trangia system is to use. No pumping, no priming, it's got a stable built in base and effective windscreen, and it's almost silent. He can have a nice conversation with someone while waiting for his water to boil. 

Tea time!

Darn fogged up glasses....